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US-12624691-B2 - Robust downhole pump barrel

US12624691B2US 12624691 B2US12624691 B2US 12624691B2US-12624691-B2

Abstract

A downhole pump barrel is nickel plated to a predefined thickness followed by Boronizing a portion of nickel matrix to create Nickel Boride layer and leaving a layer of nickel between the newly formed Nickel Boride and the barrel metal surface. The top layer of Nickel Boride provides a hard surface like chrome plating which increases the wear/abrasion resistance during the sucker rod pump production. The nickel matrix disposed beneath the Nickel Boride acts as a barrier from any corrosion attacks reaching the barrel metal surface.

Inventors

  • Santhosh Ramaswamy

Assignees

  • Q2 ARTIFICIAL LIFT SERVICES LLC

Dates

Publication Date
20260512
Application Date
20240814

Claims (20)

  1. 1 . A barrel for use in a sucker-rod pump assembly, comprising: a tubular core element defining an interior surface and a longitudinal axis; an interior layer formed on at least a portion of the interior surface, the interior layer including: a first region comprising Nickel Boride, wherein the thickness of the first region, when measured in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, is in the range of approximately 40 microns to 80 microns; and a second region substantially free of Boron, wherein the thickness of the second region, when measured in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, is in the range of approximately 1 micron to 40 microns; and wherein the second region is closer to the interior surface of the core element than the first region, when considered in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis.
  2. 2 . The barrel of claim 1 wherein the second region consists of nickel plate.
  3. 3 . The barrel of claim 1 wherein the tubular core element further defines an exterior surface and the barrel further comprises: an exterior layer formed on at least a portion of the exterior surface, the exterior layer including: a third region comprising Nickel Boride; and a fourth region substantially free of Boron; and wherein the fourth region is closer to the exterior surface of the core element than the third region, when considered in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis.
  4. 4 . The barrel of claim 1 wherein each of the first and second regions has a hardness, and wherein the hardness of the first region is greater than the hardness of the second region.
  5. 5 . The barrel of claim 1 wherein each of the first and second regions has a degree of corrosion resistance, and wherein the degree of corrosion resistance of first region is less than the degree of corrosion resistance of the second region.
  6. 6 . The barrel of claim 2 wherein the combined thickness of the first and second regions, when considered in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, is greater than the combined thickness of the third and fourth region, when considered in the same direction.
  7. 7 . The barrel of claim 6 wherein the thickness of the second region, when considered in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, is within 5% of the thickness of fourth region, when considered in the same direction.
  8. 8 . A method of forming a barrel for use in a sucker-rod pump assembly, the method comprising the steps of: electroplating a layer of nickel onto an interior surface of a tubular metal object to form a nickel-plated tubular object; applying a mixture containing Boron to the nickel-plated tubular object; heating the nickel-plated tubular object and the applied Boron containing mixture over a period of time to cause at least some of the Boron within the mixture to diffuse into the nickel layer to form a region of Nickel Boride; cooling the heated nickel-plated tubular object; and controlling extent and duration of the heating step to ensure that a region of the electroplated nickel layer is formed between the Nickel Boride region and the interior surface of the tubular metal object that is substantially free of Boron.
  9. 9 . The method of claim 8 wherein the step of electroplating the layer of nickel further comprises the step of controlling the duration of the electroplating step such that the thickness of the resultant nickel electroplated layer is less than approximately 80 microns.
  10. 10 . The method of claim 9 wherein the step of controlling the extent and duration of the heating step further comprises the step of controlling the extent and duration of the heating step such that the thickness of the Nickel Boride region is greater than approximately 40 microns.
  11. 11 . The method step of claim 9 , further comprising the step of controlling the duration of the electroplating step such that the thickness of the resultant nickel electroplated layer is greater than approximately 40 microns.
  12. 12 . The method of claim 8 wherein the step of applying a mixture containing Boron to the nickel-plated tubular object comprises a step of exposing the nickel-plated tubular object to a gas containing Boron.
  13. 13 . The method of claim 8 wherein a time duration separates the step of electroplating a layer of nickel onto an interior surface of a tubular metal object to form a nickel-plated tubular object from the step of applying a mixture containing Boron to the nickel-plated tubular object, and wherein the time duration is greater than approximately 60 minutes.
  14. 14 . A barrel for use in a sucker-rod pump assembly, the barrel comprising a tubular member having an inner exposed surface comprising: an exposed surface layer formed by subjecting a base material to a diffusion process, the exposed surface layer including a diffused element and having: (a) a thickness of between approximately 40 and approximately 80 microns, (b) a first relative hardness, and (c) a first relative resistance to corrosion; an intermediate layer comprising the base material, the intermediate layering being substantially free of the diffused element and having: (a) a thickness of between approximately 1 and approximately 40 microns; (b) a second relative hardness, and (c) a second relative resistance to corrosion; and a core layer to which the intermediate layer was applied.
  15. 15 . The barrel of claim 14 wherein the base material is Nickel.
  16. 16 . The barrel of claim 15 wherein the exposed surface layer comprises Nickel Boride.
  17. 17 . The barrel of claim 14 wherein the first relative resistance to corrosion is less than the second relative resistance to corrosion and wherein the first relative hardness is greater than the second relative hardness.
  18. 18 . The barrel of claim 14 wherein core layer has a third relative hardness, and wherein the first relative hardness is greater than both the first relative hardness and the second relative hardness and wherein the second relative hardness is less than the third relative hardness.
  19. 19 . The barrel of claim 14 wherein the core layer has a thickness of at least 0.19 inches.
  20. 20 . The barrel of claim 14 wherein the exposed surface layer and the intermediate layer are formed through a process in which the core layer is subjected to a nickel plating process to produce a nickel plate; and the nickel plate is subject to a Boronization process to produce the exposed surface layer, wherein the exposed surface layer comprises Nickel Boride.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/520,028, filed on Aug. 16, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein for all purposes. STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT Not applicable. REFERENCE TO APPENDIX Not applicable. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present disclosure generally relates to a downhole bump barrel for use in a downhole artificial lift of the type that may be used to remove hydrocarbons from the ground. The disclosed elements and processes, however, may have applications outside the disclosed field and this description is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter in any way. Description of the Related Art Downhole sucker-rod pumps are used in sucker-rod type artificial lift systems. Such systems conventionally include a number of different components including those illustrated in FIG. 1, below. FIG. 1 depicts a conventional sucker-rod artificial lift system 10 that includes, a movable assembly 11 that includes a traveling valve 12; a plunger 13; a coupling plunger 14; a valve rod 16 and a valve rod bushing 18. In the example of FIG. 1, in use, the movable assembly 10 is typically positioned within a stationary assembly 20 such that the movable assembly 10 may be stroked upwardly and downwardly within the stationary assembly 10. The movement producing the stroking may result from, for example, the coupling of the movable assembly 10 to a beam pumping unit (not illustrated in FIG. 1). In the example of FIG. 1, a conventional stationary assembly 10 is depicted that includes a hold-down assembly (comprising elements 21a and 21b); a standing valve 22; a barrel 24; barrel connector 26 and a valve rod guide 28. During use movement of the movable assembly 11 within the stationary assemble 20 will result operation of a pump assemble in which: (a) a volume of production fluid is received within the barrel 24—through the plunger 13 and the traveling valve 12—during each typical downstroke and (b) a volume of production fluid is lifted through the annulus that will exist between the inner walls of the barrel 24 and the exterior of the movable assembly 11 during each typical upstroke. Thus, in the described system, production fluid will be received within, and move within, the interior space of the barrel 24 during each upstroke. As those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, production fluid in a downhole well typically contains particles of various sizes (sand, for example), potentially corrosive materials; and or potentially abrading materials. As such, the interior of the barrel 24 is subject to harsh conditions tending to promote wear, abrasion and/or cracking. Such conditions can result in damage and/or deterioration of the material forming the barrel 24 resulting in failure of the artificial lift system 100, sub-optimum performance of the system 100, and/or undesired wear of the system 100. The problem of undesired wear and/or corrosion of barrel surfaces has been long-standing within the relevant art and various approaches have been attempted to increase the wear/abrasion resistance of barrels. But to date, such attempts have been sub-optimal. For example, it has been known to coat the inner surface of a barrel formed primarily from iron with a layer of chrome to increase the wear/abrasion of a barrel. One example of such an approach is reflected in FIG. 2, below, in which a portion of the barrel metal surface 100 is shown as being coated with a chrome layer 101. One deficiency of this approach is that, upon use, micro-cracks can form within the chrome layer 101 that can easily propagate through the chrome layer 101, producing crevasses through which the corrosive and/or wearing fluid can pass and contact the barrel metal surface 100, thus damaging the metal surface. An alternate approach for that has been attempted to protect barrel surfaces within an artificial lift system involves the use of a NiCarb (or Ni-Carb) coating. One example of such an approach may be found in FIG. 3, below. FIG. 3 depicts a portion of a barrel that includes a metal barrel surface 100 to which has been applied a coating 105 that comprises carbide particles 106 dispersed within a nickel matrix 105. While this approach can be beneficial in some applications, and provide a degree of corrosion and wear resistance, it is not an optimal approach because the presence of abrasive particles, such as sand, within a production fluid can penetrate and/or strip away the relatively soft nickel matrix 105, and—over time—remove the coating from the barrel metal surface 100, thus exposing the surface 100 to the harsh production fluid. A still further alternate approach—similar to that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 10,138,384—is reflected in FIG. 4, below, which shows a barrel surface that includes a barrel metal surface 100 to which a nickel matrix 107 has been applied